To Watch:
Joint Resolution 1998-1: Criminal Justice/Bail
Would expand the categories of criminal cases in which bail may be denied the accused, including capital offenders and maximum life sentence offenders.

Pennsylvania, once the world's steel capital, also has one of the country's
richest histories. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were
written and signed in Philadelphia, and in its heyday, the state was home to
much of America's heavy industry. But population growth has slowed, and the state has lost nine congressional seats since 1960. Pennsylvania is a national leader in
restricting abortion. Its anti-abortion laws, shepherded to passage by former
Democratic Gov. Bob Casey, were upheld by the Supreme Court in 1992. The
Keystone State tends to be culturally conservative and economically liberal. In recent years Pennsylvania has trended Republican, with the GOP holding the governorship and both Senate seats. But that edge is small -- Sens. Specter and Santorum won their most recent elections with only 49 percent of the vote and Gov. Tom Ridge was elected with only 45 percent. And presidentially the state hasn't favored either party.